HONG KONG (SE): In response to the “Day of Prayer for the Church in China”, a Mass was celebrated by Bishop Stephen Chow Sau Yan S.J. together with Bishops Emeritus John Cardinal Tong Hon, Joseph Cardinal Zen Ze-kiun, Auxiliary Bishop Joseph Ha Chi-shing and around 40 priests.
In 2007, Pope Benedict XVI issued a letter to the Church in China on May 27, expressing his desire for “the Catholics of the whole world to be united in prayer with the Church in China.”
In this letter, the Pope asks that Catholics throughout the entire world set aside May 24th, the Feast of Our Lady Help of Christians, venerated with great devotion at the Marian Shrine of Sheshan in Shanghai, as the Day of Prayer for the Church in China.
Through this letter, Pope Benedict XVI wanted to show everyone in the Church in China that they are particularly close to the heart of the Holy Father.
Bishop Chow thanked the concelebrating priests as well as the deacons assisting and all attending the Mass to gather together to pray for China in unity.
The Mass started with a ceremony before the image of Our Lady of Sheshan in which Bishop Chow led all to pay reverence to Our Lady and prayed for her intercession for more strength for the Church in China to face its trials.
Bishop Chow delivered his homily in English and Chinese. In his English homily, he expressed his admiration of early missionaries, especially Father Matteo Ricci and his companions, who had covered incredible distances before arriving in China. The bishop said these early missionaries had great admiration for the amazing depth of the Chinese culture as well as similarities existing between the Chinese and Christian cultures, and were dedicated to, despite pressure from inside and outside the Church, promote the inculturation of evangelisation, so that our compatriots could better understand and accept Christianity.
He honoured the contribution of the Blessed Virgin Mary to accompany the early Church, “Therefore, we join the entire Church for the Catholics in China in prayer today. Praying through the intercesssion of Our Lady of Sheshan and Our Lady, Help of Christians, that there will be unity within the Church under the leadership of the Holy Father, contributing to the welfare and best interests of the country,” he said.
In his Chinese homily, the bishop said Our Lady is highly revered in Sheshan, Shanghai. The annual prayer for the Church in China on this feast day is a sign that it is close to the heart of the pope and is of great concern of the universal Church. He noted that the modern China has also faced different kinds of trials from internal and external sources. Yet, in spite of the difficulties, the Church in China has been able to grow and develop in some ways.
He said the Catholic Church has made some mistakes in the world in its history, but pointed out that the Church “does not have a colonial mentality” in China today.
“Like Father Ricci who made efforts for inculturation, and Pope Francis who is committed to promoting dialogue and communication with the Chinese government, our prayer is that both sides will know how to let go of the presuppositions, assumptions and prejudices they have placed on each other, further understand each other with empathy and build up mutual trust. Although the above approach is not without its challenges, it will be very important and effective,” he said.
The congregation was then led to pray for the universal Church, and that the Holy Spirit would lead the members of the Church to be faithful and to embody the spirit of “synodality” under the leadership of the Holy Father, as well as to be sensitive to the needs of society and to strive to uphold the dignity of humanity.
Together they also prayed for the peace of the world and conflicts to be resolved through dialogues, and for children being given a chance to grow up in the love of Christ.
At the end of the Mass, a Prayer of His Holiness Benedict XVI “To Our Lady of Sheshan on the Occasion of the World Day of Prayer for the Church in China” was recited by Annie Lam, a representative of the Holy Spirit Study Centre, before the image of Our Lady to honour her perseverance before trials.
